It’s a Small World After All… Literally

Trigger warning: Mentions of eating disorders and pictures posted of extremely thin cartoon characters

Us humans are a weird and interesting species, with varied opinions on just about any topic you can think of. But when it comes to giving makeovers to our beloved animated characters and updating them to fit modern times, I think I can safely say that the general consensus is “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Well, a high-end retailer decided that some fixing was in order when it came to some of the most popular animated characters in the world, and the reaction has been equal parts horror and disgust.

Barney’s Department Store is facing a lot of backlash for drastically altering iconic Disney characters and using the images in a brand new holiday campaign that will debut at their New York store on November 14. And when I mean “drastically altered,” I’m not lying.

Here’s the Minnie Mouse we’re all used to seeing:

And here’s Minnie redesigned,where the only thing still recognizable is the ears:

Goofy, who just happens to be my favorite Disney character, was the one that really made me go “WTF?” Here’s the original Goofy we all know and love:

And now Goofy redesigned, who looks like a lost member of One Direction:

Finally, here’s the regular Daisy Duck:

And, here’s Daisy redesigned, all glammed up and ready to strut her stuff:

Of course, you may have noticed that Minnie, Goofy and Daisy are a lot skinnier in these recent incarnations. Barney’s creative director, Dennis Freedman, defended the decision to whittle down their waists:

When we got to the moment when all Disney characters walk on the runway, there was a discussion. The standard Minnie Mouse will not look so good in a Lanvin dress. There was a real moment of silence, because these characters don’t change. I said, “If we’re going to make this work, we have to have a 5-foot-11 Minnie,” and [Disney] agreed.

While criticizing the decision to essentially put Minnie, Goofy and Daisy (and other characters whose redesigned images haven’t been officially released yet) on a virtual crash diet seems trivial, Freedman’s comments about the standard Minnie not looking good in high-end fashion really demonstrates the mindset that many in and out of the fashion industry have.

They believe our bigger bodies don’t look good in designer clothes and that we shouldn’t have them created for us. Many expensive brand name retailers won’t go above a size 8, believing the day they start making plus lines, they will no longer be considered exclusive and ritzy.

Changing these characters’ bodies into something that physically can’t exist anywhere in the real world also sends out a dangerous message (especially to young kids and teenagers) that they won’t be good enough to wear nice clothes and have nice things unless they’re super-thin. While we continue to debate the media’s role in affecting eating disorders, I believe it is a factor in shaping the mentality of people who are suffering from EDs. This is especially true when magazines glorify disordered eating techniques and insane workout regimens as healthy ways to lose weight and stay in shape.

This isn’t the first time cartoon characters have gone through dramatic makeovers and received negative reactions. Several years ago, fans of Strawberry Shortcake were aghast when a new, updated version came out and she resembled  classic anime character, complete with thinner body.

Strawberry Shortcake was no longer the little girl who adorned many a little girl’s bedroom and birthday cake.

And in the newest Scooby-Doo cartoon series, Mystery Incorporated, Velma Dinkley was slimmed down, got a breast augmentation, and put flower barrettes in her hair to make her more “girly.”

Here’s the classic Velma for reference:

Dinkley also developed an infatuation with Shaggy, somewhat dumbing her down (but to be honest, I always thought she and Shaggy had something going on on the side anyway).

In the end, though, these slimmer, sleeker and sexier versions aren’t going to be the ones people will remember fondly. It’s ironic that in the real world, human bodies with even a trace of visual fat are considered unhealthy and undesirable, but in some areas of the make-believe world, flab is perfectly fine. If only those feelings would cross over, we’d be a lot better off.